Helikon has a new slogan

Dmitry Bertman: “Whatever the circumstances, the most important thing is not to stop the music”

“Under the fabulous sky of “Helikon” is the new slogan of the theater of Dmitry Bertman, with which he enters his 33rd theatrical season.

The directors of the opera film project are Dmitry Bertman and Valery Spirin, the conductor is Valery Kiryanov. In parallel, at the end of August, “Helikon” will go on tour to Khanty-Mansiysk, where they will present the opera “Eugene Onegin” by P.I. Tchaikovsky. And already on September 1, the II Youth Program of Opera Singers starts at the theater on Bolshaya Myasnitskaya: the first, of the 2020/2021 season, has become very successful, and its participants have acquired unique acting and vocal skills, which are now being implemented on the leading stages of Russian theaters, and soprano Elizaveta Kulagina was accepted into the Helikon troupe.

“Everyone in himself should not stop the music,” Bertman said, addressing the artists. — Because we ourselves are responsible for the music, and the music in us is our life. Whatever the circumstances, the most important thing is not to stop the music.

Even if someone had planned to stop her, he would not have succeeded, because Helikon’s plans are huge and they will not be allowed to do this. Performances at festivals in the open air format (“Eugene Onegin” in Belgorod), “Russian Opera at the Monastery Walls” in cities near Moscow: this time in Sergiev Posad on the square near the Holy Trinity Sergius Lavra and in Serpukhov on the Cathedral Square of the Assumption Monastery theater will present “Sadko” by N.A. Rimsky-Korsakov.

– The open air format is tricky for the sound of soloists, choir and orchestra. Are you afraid to spoil the impression?

– It is really always very difficult, but all flowers must grow. Yes, open air has its drawbacks – here you need to build special acoustics, it can always rain. But there are many advantages, for example, birds can fly when you do not expect it and their flight is not spelled out in the score. Stars can burn – this cannot be done in the theater.

– Before you attracted foreign performers, artists. Last season was closed with the premiere of the opera Aida, in which Estonian masters acted as set designer and costume designer. How to work in new conditions?

– The question is very interesting, but we must understand that our theater was created as an ensemble theater and it never depended on guest singers. We have always worked with our troupe – this is our style of work. There were never obligations, contracts with artists from other countries. We are self-sufficient. Yes, we invited artists, conductors, but now is such a period – we will work on our own.

The premiere of the 33rd season will be the opera La bohème by Giacomo Puccini. Four young directors are working on it at once – laureates of the Nano-Opera International Competition for Young Opera Directors of different years. They are supervised by Dmitry Bertman. The second opera premiere of “Medium” by Gian Carlo Menotti (director Ilya Ilyin, music director of the production, theater conductor Valery Kiryanov).

The audience is waiting for the program of romances “Don’t Awaken Memories” performed by Nina Shatskaya and the educational project “Liudmila Zhumayeva’s Living Room” with the program “I remember the waltz is a lovely sound.” In honor of the 150th anniversary of the birth of the outstanding Russian composer Sergei Rachmaninov, the theater will host the Rachmaninov April in Helikon festival. Within its framework, in the White Column Hall of Princess Shakhovskaya, the performance “Aleko” will be shown, and then the “Liturgy of John Chrysostom” and “The Bells” will be performed by the Helikonites.

The theater will finish its 33rd season with the premiere of P. Mascagni’s opera Rural Honor staged by Dmitry Bertman.

Published in the newspaper “Moskovsky Komsomolets” No. 28847 dated August 16, 2022

Newspaper headline:
“Helikon” starts with cinema